In a recent email to The Baltimore Sun, screenwriter Steve Kloves (who adapted all of the Harry Potter movies, except for Order of the Phoenix) discusses the decision behind the recently announced split of Deathly Hallows into two movies, and what it means to him.
“Years ago,” he writes, “we briefly — and seriously — considered doing Goblet of Fire as two films. So this concept is not altogether new. As for Deathly Hallows, I intuited — almost from the first moments I began reading it and certainly once I’d finished — that to realize the story in a single film was going to be a tall order. Others in ‘the group’ felt similarly. So the idea of two films began to get kicked around as early as late summer of 2007. We didn’t take it lightly. But ultimately everyone felt that despite the challenges it would present, it was the most sound creative decision. I’m sure some will think we’re crazy. My wife looked at me cross-eyed when I first mentioned it. But I’m really excited about it because it should allow us to stretch a bit with the characters and give them the proper send-off. The story is highly emotional and those moments deserve time to breathe. And, personally, I feel we owe it to Jo — in order to preserve the integrity of the work — and the fans — for their loyalty all these years — to give them the best and most complete experience possible. I’d love to do it in three parts!”
He also noted that working with director David Yates on currently filming Half-Blood Prince “was a brilliant experience, so this should be a treat!”
I’ve always enjoyed Kloves’s scripts, and am looking forward to seeing what he will do with DH. Personally, I was all behind them splitting GoF into two movies as well, because they concentrated WAY too much on the action and not on the characters, but what do I know. I’m really glad they decided to do this!
As much as I liked what David Yates did with OOTP, I was still kind of hoping Peter Jackson wanted the job…!
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 will be released in November of 2010, while Deathly Hallows: Part 2 will come out in May of 2011.
What do you guys think?
